Former world number six Gael Monfils' return to the ATP Tour ended with a straight-sets first-round defeat to Jordan Thompson at the Indian Wells Open on Wednesday.
The 37-year-old Frenchman has not played competitively since August last year due to injury but was eliminated by Thompson 6-3 6-1 in one hour and five minutes.
The Australian was ruthless, converting four of six break points generated, while he did not offer up any to Monfils.
Monfils was rusty, committing 17 unforced errors to Thompson's five, but the veteran hit 14 winners.
Thompson's victory earns him a second-round meeting with second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Brandon Nakashima won the battle of the Americans, getting past John Isner 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 in one hour and 39 minutes. Nakashima progresses to face fifth seed Daniil Medvedev.
China's Wu Yibing produced some thrilling tennis, including an astonishing volley, in his 6-7 (6-8) 6-0 7-6 (7-3) victory over Jaume Munar.
World number 38 Diego Schwartzman won 6-1 6-2 over fellow Argentinian Federico Coria, while 47th-ranked Jiri Lehecka got past Arthur Rinderknech 7-6 (7-4) 7-5.
Australia's Jason Kubler toppled Lorenzo Sonego 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in almost two hours, while 42nd-ranked Bernabe Zapata Miralles was beaten 6-2 7-6 (8-6) by Ugo Humbert.
Finland's Emil Ruusovuori triumphed with Constant Lestienne retiring down 6-4 4-1 and world number 46 Alexander Bublik was a shock casualty, going down 6-4 6-4 to Wu Ting-Lin.
Devin Booker made Phoenix Suns history with 44 points in the Phoenix Suns' 132-101 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, where Kevin Durant's anticipated home debut was delayed due to an ankle injury.
Durant had been named in the Suns' starting line-up but suffered an ankle sprain during the warm-ups and was ruled out of the game on Wednesday at the Footprint Center.
In Durant's absence, Booker put on a show, becoming the first player in franchise history with four straight 35-point games.
Booker finished with 44 points on 17-of-23 shooting from the field, making six-of-10 from beyond the arc in a masterful display from only 28 minutes on court, checking out in the fourth quarter.
The Suns guard had 30 points by half-time in the blowout win which gave fourth-placed Phoenix a cushion on the chasing pack for the Western Conference playoffs spots.
Veteran guard Chris Paul added 18 points with nine assists and four steals, while Terrence Ross scored 24 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
For the Thunder, Lindy Waters III top scored off the bench with 23 points including six three-pointers, while Josh Giddey had 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Doncic injured as Mavs lose to Pels
The Dallas Mavericks lost Luka Doncic to injury as their defensive struggles continued with a 113-106 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, who are still without star center Zion Williamson.
The Mavs slipped to eighth in the west with the defeat and will be sweating on Doncic's fitness, exiting in the third quarter with a strained left thigh after 15 points and eight assists.
C.J. McCollum landed six-of-eight three-point attempts in his 32 points for the Pels, who made 13-of-27 from beyond the arc, compared to Dallas' 16-of-46.
Hawks triumph despite Porzingis career-high
Kristaps Porzingis scored a career-high 43 points, but it was not enough as the Washington Wizards lost 122-120 to the Atlanta Hawks.
De'Andre Hunter's go-ahead three-point play with 1:07 left in the fourth quarter settled the tight win, as new Hawks head coach Quin Snyder saw his side improve to 33-33.
Atlanta guard Trae Young scored 28 points with 10 assists and three steals, while Porzingis was outstanding, shooting 17-of-22 from the field including seven-of-10 from three-point range.
Last week's ATX Open champion Marta Kostyuk was bundled out in the Indian Wells Open first round by last month's Merida Open runner-up Rebecca Peterson on Wednesday.
The Swedish qualifier, who reached her first WTA final in four years in Merida having had her 2022 derailed by injury, triumphed 7-5 5-7 7-5 over the Ukrainian world number 40 in almost three hours.
Kostyuk, ranked 40th in the world, was not helped by 17 double faults across the match, with Peterson progressing to the second round where she will face 22nd seed Zhang Shuai.
Alize Cornet was also a surprise first-round loser, going down 6-2 7-5 to 427th-ranked Evgeniya Rodina in one hour and 42 minutes.
Rodina's prize for her shock victory is a second-round date with 2023 Australian champion and second seed Aryna Sabalenka.
Camila Giorgi, who beat Peterson for the aforementioned Merida Open crown last month, won through with a routine 6-3 6-3 victory over Arantxa Rus. Giorgi will next face third seed Jessica Pegula.
World number 41 Shelby Rogers was pushed for two hours and 22 minutes by Katie Volynets but triumphed 6-4 4-6 6-1. Rogers will take on seventh seed Maria Sakkari in the second round.
China's Wang Xin, making her Indian Wells debut, defeated former world number 12 Elise Mertens 6-3 6-1, while world number 33 Zhu Lin was downed by Lesia Tsurenko 6-4 6-3.
Aliaksandra Sasnovich won 6-3 7-6 (7-5) over veteran Kaia Kanepi, while 53rd-ranked Linda Fruhvirtova fought back after copping a bagel to win 0-6 6-2 6-3 over 52nd-ranked Mayar Sherif.
Jil Teichman set up a second-round clash with Swiss compatriot Belinda Bencic after a 6-1 6-4 victory over Ashlyn Krueger.
Kevin Durant will undergo an MRI after injuring his ankle prior to his anticipated home debut for the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.
Durant was ruled out of the game after slipping awkwardly and spraining his left ankle during warmups.
The Suns won 132-101 over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Durant's absence, with Devin Booker scoring 44 points.
Suns head coach Monty Williams was hopeful that Durant had avoided a serious sprain but the All-Star is scheduled for an MRI on Thursday.
"We'll get more testing done tomorrow,” Williams told reporters. "Right now, it's just an ankle sprain and we don't have anything official to report."
Durant was traded to the Suns last month from the Brooklyn Nets and was due to play for the first time as a Phoenix player at the Footprint Center, having played three road games since overcoming a knee injury.
"I feel bad for him because he feels bad," Williams added. "I saw his face and - I've been around him so many times - I know what he's feeling and I don't want him feeling that way at all."
Booker, who continued his hot streak with his fourth straight 35-point game, said the Suns would re-schedule Durant's welcome.
"We'll re-schedule the party," Booker said. "I'm sure they'll be back, people that missed out on tonight. I tried to give them a little something to make it better."
Minnesota Wild head coach Dean Evason hailed goal-tender Marc-Andre Fleury as they extended their points streak to 11 games with a 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday.
The Wild improved their recent run to 9-0-2, despite losing in an over-time shoot-out to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, to continue their postseason push.
Marcus Foligno grabbed a goal and an assist, while Frederick Gaudreau, Ryan Hartman and Mason Shaw also scored, but Fleury made 46 saves and earned praise from Evason.
"Our goal-tender won the hockey game for us," Evason told reporters.
"It was obvious what happened against Calgary, [Flames goal-tender] Markstrom won it probably for them. Goal-tenders come up big and Fleury was huge for us tonight."
The Wild may have boosted their playoffs case but they were left with an injury worry with top scorer Kiriil Kaprizov hitting the ice hard and exiting the game in the third period.
"I've not been in the rooms, so I don’t know yet," Evason said about Kaprizov's status. "He was able to skate off, so if there's a positive, that was one of them."
Evason hailed center Oskar Sundqvist who provided two assists, having only joined the Wild in a trade from the Detroit Red Wings last week.
"We liked Sundqvist's game tonight," Evason said. "His stick was real good. He made a couple of nice passes last night, we just didn’t convert.
"He's got a skill set that combined with his size and ability to get up the ice and finish checks, hopefully he can continue to generate offensive opportunities for us."
Robbie Anderson’s time with the Arizona Cardinals turned out to be very unproductive and extremely short.
The Cardinals released the wide receiver on Wednesday after he appeared in just 10 games following his acquisition from the Carolina Panthers in October.
By cutting the seven-year pro, Arizona will save $12 million in salary cap space for 2023. Anderson was due $8.8 million in salary, $200,000 in workout bonuses and a roster bonus of $3 million.
The Cardinals traded a 2024 sixth-round draft pick and a 2025 seventh-round pick to Carolina in exchange for Anderson, who had been sent to the locker room mid-game by Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks in his final game with the team.
In need of a healthy receiver after an injury to Marquise Brown, the Cardinals took a chance on Anderson, but he was slow to pick up the offense and finished with just seven catches for 76 yards in 10 games.
Anderson, who recently changed his legal name to Chosen Robbie Anderson, spent his first four seasons with the New York Jets. He set career highs with 95 receptions for 1,096 yards in 2020 in his first season with the Panthers but dropped to 53 catches and 519 yards the following season.
The wait for Zion Williamson's return from a right hamstring strain continues with the New Orleans Pelicans announcing he will miss at least the next two weeks.
Williamson has not played since January 2 due to the injury, and the Pelicans have slipped down to 10th in the Western Conference with a 31-34 record in his absence.
The 2019 NBA Draft first overall pick suffered a setback on the injury on February 12, with the Pels offering an update on Wednesday following re-evaluation.
"Medical imaging revealed that Williamson's hamstring continues to heal," the Pelicans statement said. "His next examination will take place in approximately two weeks."
The Pels said last week in an update that Williamson "continues to make progress" but his absence has dragged on beyond two months.
New Orleans head coach Willie Green said on Wednesday he was "definitely optimistic" the center would return before the end of the regular season, which concludes on April 9.
"He's building his strength," Green said. "Doing some pool workouts. He can get on AlterG. He can get on the floor and spot shoot.
"He's progressing, but we're extremely mindful of the last time we got to six weeks and he wasn't quite ready. So we want to make sure we're mindful of that."
Williamson has battled injuries throughout his NBA career, missing the entire 2021-22 season due to a foot injury.
The two-time All-Star has played 29 of 65 games this season, averaging 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists.
Police confirmed Ja Morant will not be charged after appearing to flash a gun at a Denver nightclub while the Memphis Grizzlies revealed he will remain away for at least their next four games.
Morant had been under investigation by the Glendale Police Department (GPD) on whether he broke the law in last week's incident where he posted an Instagram Live video that seemed to show him brandishing a gun inside a nightclub.
In a statement the GPD said it "was not able to determine that probable cause existed for the filing of any charges".
The GPD said it did not receive any calls for assistance at the nightclub that evening, nor were disturbances reported.
"Although the video was concerning enough to prompt an investigation, there was not enough available evidence to charge anyone with a crime," the statement said.
It is not against the law to carry a gun in Colorado, but there are exceptions to the rule, one of which being you must not be in possession of one while under the influence of alcohol. Morant was not seen to be drinking during the footage.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies confirmed the extension of Morant's time away from the team, having initially stated he would miss at least two games. Morant said in a statement he would use the time to "get help".
The 2022 NBA Most Improved Player missed those initial games on Sunday and Tuesday, in losses to the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers respectively.
The 23-year-old All-Star will miss upcoming games against the Golden State Warriors, the Dallas Mavericks (home and away) and the Miami Heat.
The Grizzlies are third in the Western Conference with a 38-26 record, with Morant averaging 27.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game this season.
Having signed a one-year contract in January 2023, Jamaica’s female cyclist Llori Sharpe will depart the island next week for Europe where she will join her teammates from Paraguay, Germany, Namibia, Rwanda, Algeria, and Austria on the CANYON//SRAM Generation Team set to participate in 21 races across Europe through to mid-September.
Six of the 21 events are two-to-six-day stage races covering 250 km to 700km.
2023 is expected to be a busy year for the young Jamaican as she is also expected to join the Jamaican team for the Pan American Road Championships from April 17-23 in Panama City. The Pan American Championships will qualify the top 19 male and female places for spots at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile.
Since returning from Europe at the end of the 2022 season, Sharpe has spent the latter part of last year studying at the UWI Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. She will complete her final semester while in Europe. She returned home to Jamaica in December where she had been training in preparation for her first competitive assignment on March 26.
Sharpe earned the first two podium finishes for the CANYON team in March 2022.
Cameron Smith's absence from the Players Championship and inability to defend his title is sad for the prestigious tournament, believes former winner Jason Day.
The reigning champion is missing from TPC Sawgrass this year following his defection from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf last season.
Smith, who also claimed The Open in 2022 before he made the move to join the Saudi-funded breakaway, is barred from competing after linking up with the rival tour, with Day conceding his omission from the field casts something of a shadow over the event.
"He lives five minutes down the road," he told Sky Sports. "I miss Cammy. I miss a lot of the guys that have gone over to the LIV Tour.
"Obviously I don't blame them for going over there. They had the opportunity to pick up whatever they wanted to, money-wise.
"They made a decision. [But] it is a little bit sad Cammy's not here this week. The decision has been made, and he's over there."
Day, the former world number one, is back at Sawgrass seven years on from his victory at The Players, which came on the heels of his only major win in the 2015 PGA Championship.
The Australian looks poised to continue into a new PGA era that will see the tour restructured, in an apparent response to the LIV's emergence.
The 2024 season will contain eight events with no cuts and limited fields of 70-78 players competing for elevated purses and FedEx Cup points.
Day refused to either endorse or criticise the expected changes though, adding: "I don't necessarily have an opinion. I just want to show up and win tournaments
"I know some guys will be divided. Regardless of what we do out here, there will be guys disappointed. Let's see how the designated events go. We've got to give it time and if they need to adjust they adjust."
Tyson Fury's potential heavyweight unification bout with Oleksandr Usyk could be in doubt after the Gypsy King turned down a 60-40 purse split, according to the Ukrainian's promoter Alex Krassyuk.
The duo's teams are in discussions for an undisputed clash, and negotiations seemed to be nearing a conclusion earlier this week.
Fury's promoter Frank Warren revealed both camps were looking to set a date and venue for the bout, while Usyk himself said both men "need this fight".
But Krassyuk has now claimed Fury's camp have turned down an increased offer for a 60-40 split favouring the fight's winner, having also reportedly pushed against an even 50-50 purse.
"Frank Warren said he's got a pot and he needs to get the agreement of both parties to participate," Krassyuk told talkSPORT.
"If the money in the pot is not enough, it won't happen. I completely agree with it. On our side, I have nothing more to add.
"We have said that we want this fight to happen as much as possible, and we are in the position to share whatever the fight generates.
"But boxing is a sport of two men and if only Usyk gets into the ring, there won't be a match for undisputed. It will be shadowboxing of the unified champion.
"We initially agreed for 50-50. But then Tyson was asking for some bigger money. We made it clear that we are ready to go 60-40, but the winner takes 60.
"That was our latest offer [but Fury turned it down], exactly."
Warren previously indicated there would be no negotiations beyond the end of this week, with both parties reportedly eyeing up an April 29 bout at Wembley Stadium.
"We're still none the wiser, we're still waiting for it to be done," Warren said. "It's all coming to a head now, but it's still not done.
"You need the agreement of both boxers to make it happen and at the moment we haven't got that, so that's where we're at.
"We're working hard to make it happen. But I would say it's not going to go past the end of this week because the proposed date is April 29."
Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has appealed to United States President Joe Biden to overturn a ban which will see Novak Djokovic miss this month's Indian Wells and Miami Open tournaments.
The world number one remains unvaccinated against Covid-19 and submitted a request for special permission to play in the two ATP Masters 1000 events in the US, with Miami set to start in under two weeks.
However, the Serbian has already been forced to withdraw from Indian Wells after his request was denied by American officials.
The US is expected to lift its ban on unvaccinated travellers in May but, in a letter to Biden on Tuesday, DeSantis urged them to reconsider their ban on Djokovic ahead of the Miami Open in his state.
"This denial is unfair, unscientific and unacceptable," DeSantis wrote in the letter, which he posted on social media.
"The only thing keeping Mr Djokovic from participating in this tournament is your administration's continued enforcement of a misguided, unscientific, and out-of-date Covid-19 vaccination requirement for foreign guests.
"I urge you to reconsider. It's time to put pandemic politics aside and give the American people what they want - let him play."
Florida senator Marco Rubio and Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas are two other figures who have also expressed their desire to see the ban overturned.
Djokovic has been involved in regular controversies as a result of his Covid-19 vaccine stance, previously stating he would be willing to forgo grand slam opportunities rather than have the vaccination.
The 22-time grand slam champion missed the Australian Open last year after being deported over the issue but returned in January 2023 to win his 10th title in Melbourne, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final.
Djokovic has not competed in either the Indian Wells or Miami Open since 2019. He has won Indian Wells on five occasions and is a record six-time winner in Miami.
DeSantis has been tipped a potential Republican presidential candidate who could take on Biden at the 2024 election if he can beat Donald Trump to his party's nomination.
Jake Paul claimed KSI is "afraid to sign the contract" to seal a fiercely anticipated bout between the pair.
The two YouTube stars turned boxers are widely expected to bring their rivalry to a head in the ring after regularly exchanging blows on social media.
Paul suffered a first career defeat last month in a split decision loss against Tommy Fury, with KSI posting a video mocking the result and calling both fighters "trash".
While Paul's immediate priority is a rematch with Fury to avenge his defeat, a clash with KSI remains in his sights, but he has accused his rival of being scared to commit to terms.
"Talk is cheap, because with all that talk and whatever he said, he's still afraid to sign the contract," Paul said on the Impaulsive podcast.
"He can talk all that s***, but let's get in the ring, 100 per cent. Talk that s***, let's sell some f***ing pay-per-views brother.
"All things considered, I talk a lot of s***, but I back to back to back I schedule these fights and go in the ring and do them, whoever it is, anywhere, anytime, any place.
"I've backed it up and proven that and shown it. He's hot on Twitter, he's got the Twitter fingers, but when it comes to actually fighting me, you have been gone, absent, haven’t actually shown up or signed the contract.
"So, talk is cheap and let's just hope he gets into the ring and we can settle all of the s*** talk there, after I go back and avenge this loss with Tommy Fury.
"I'm KSI's end goal, but for me there's bigger fights out there, it's just a pit stop."
When Fraser McConnell joins up with Cristina Gutiérrez on team X44 Vida Carbon Racing for season three of the Extreme E Championship, they will be teammates who share mutual respect.
The Jamaican RallyCross star will make his debut at the start of season 3 on March 11-12 at the Desert X Prix in Saudi Arabia, having replaced veteran rally and rallycross driver Sebastien Loeb in the team that won the championship last season.
He has big shoes to fill but is going in with a growing reputation as the fast-rising rallycross star with three qualifier wins under his belt this season, a fact not lost on Gutierrez.
“Following last season’s win, I am so excited to get back on track and give it my all again for the team. Fraser is an exciting young Jamaican talent and I am looking forward to racing with him this year," she said. "I feel privileged to be part of the journey towards a fairer, more inclusive industry.”
McConnell, meanwhile, plans to learn from his more experienced partner.
"I am delighted to join X44 Vida Carbon Racing, and to be part of a Championship-winning team," he said.
"I ‘m impressed with Cristina’s performances in the first two seasons of Extreme E and can’t wait to drive alongside her and put Jamaica in the motorsport conversation here; I hope to learn a lot from her prior experience. It’s never a bad thing to race alongside a World Champion!”
With his new pairing in place, team owner, seven-time Formula 1 champion Sir Lewis Hamilton is looking forward to the new season with high expectations.
"We know from the findings of The Hamilton Commission that the motorsport industry is an incredibly difficult place to break into, and I hope that X44 Vida Carbon Racing can be a powerful platform to provide opportunities to the next generation," Hamilton said.
"It has never been more important that we, as an industry, take real action to move our sport forward, and X44 Vida Carbon’s new direction is one of the ways I am committing to making that genuine change.”
Andy Murray expects Russian and Belarusian players to feature at Wimbledon in 2023, though he understands if the ban is upheld.
Last year, players from both nations were prevented from participating following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the ban resulting in Wimbledon being stripped of ranking points.
Additionally, the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) was fined £1.4million by the ATP and WTA due to players being excluded.
It is yet to be announced whether the ban will remain in place for this year's competition, though Murray expects there to be no such limitations.
"It's a really difficult one and I do feel for the players who weren't able to play last year – but I also understand the situation and why it's really hard for Wimbledon to make a call on it as well," he told BBC Sport.
"My understanding is that they are going to be allowed to play and I'm not going to be going nuts if that is the case.
"But if Wimbledon went down another route, I would be understanding of that."
Murray's comments came at Indian Wells, where he faces Tomas Etcheverry on Thursday, with the potential of an all-British affair against Dan Evans or Jack Draper in the third round.
Evans and Draper will face off in the second round if the latter beats Leandro Riedi, while Murray would have to defeat Etcheverry and Pablo Carreno Busta to set up a tussle with either of his compatriots.
But Murray insists he is not looking that far ahead.
"To be honest, I don't really care that much. Obviously, I can see why it's interesting, and if Evo [Evans] plays against Jack I'll be interested in the match," he added.
"But I'm not particularly bothered by it and for me it's not going to impact me until the third round. I need to get there and this is not always a tournament where I have played amazingly."
Lewis Hamilton urged Mercedes engineers to "own up" for their performance issues after a slow start to the season.
The seven-time world champion finished fifth in the opening race of the 2023 Formula One season in Bahrain, behind both Red Bull cars, Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz.
Any hope that Mercedes would be able to compete at the front of the grid following a woeful campaign in 2022 is already on the back burner, with the zero-pods concept continuing to attract criticism.
Team principal Toto Wolff admitted on Sunday that "radical" changes are needed, a view that Hamilton clearly shares.
Major improvements for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix later this month are unlikely, but Hamilton is keen for the engineers to own up to their errors.
"Last year, I told them the issues that are with the car," he told the BBC's Chequered Flag podcast.
"Like, I've driven so many cars in my life, so I know what a car needs, I know what a car doesn't need.
"And I think it's really about accountability, it's about owning up and saying 'yeah, you know what, we didn't listen to you, it's not where it needs to be and we've got to work'.
"We've got to look into the balance through the corners, look at all the weak points and just huddle up as a team, that's what we do.
"We're still multi World Champions you know, it's just they haven't got it right this time, they didn't get it right last year, but that doesn't mean we can't get it right moving forwards."
The Floridian fairways and greens of Sawgrass are in a splendid state ahead of the Players Championship, but the same can hardly be said for professional golf as a whole.
Riven by conflict and division, the turbulence of the last year is reflected by who is absent this week. The defending champion, Cameron Smith, for starters.
A defector to LIV Golf, drawn in by a staggering signing-on fee of reportedly $100million, Smith traded his parking spot and right to practise at Sawgrass, his local course, for the Saudi bounty.
It would be difficult for anybody to turn down such riches, so rather than sit in judgement of the 29-year-old Australian it is a timely moment to look at where the sport finds itself, with the PGA Tour battling to retain talent.
Notorious LIV? Mo money, mo problems
Is the LIV tour really the black-hearted enemy to golf that some would portray it as? It obviously would say not, and its tour chiefs, headed by CEO Greg Norman, have mounted passionate defences of the splinter series that has put up huge sums to draw in many of the world's elite.
Golf can be a short-lived career for stars at the highest level, so young players may see an opportunity to make quick money and instantly set themselves up for life.
Those at the opposite end, who have made phenomenal money already but are perhaps seeing diminishing returns, have been handed opportunities to cash in on their big profiles for a late-career pay day. Look to the likes of Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood in this regard.
Would those in the middle be quite so tempted? The PGA Tour would hope they might show loyalty after being well served, so it will have particularly hurt to see the likes of Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Bryson DeChambeau make the leap across.
Norman has argued LIV is "unlocking potential", claiming in a News Nation interview in January that golf "has been stuck in a box for 53 years".
Australian Norman also took criticism for declaring that "we've all made mistakes", when he defended the Saudi regime last year, responding to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The fact LIV is bankrolled by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has sparked suggestions golf is being manipulated for sportswashing purposes, and those claims are not going away.
How has the PGA Tour responded?
When the weapon in a fight is money, you have to find more of it to keep the troops happy.
The PGA Tour has hiked up prize funds at eight key events this season. Among these is The Players, where it has leapt from $20m last year to a $25m purse this week.
That announcement came last June. As recently as last week, though, the PGA Tour confirmed it would introduce designated events with limited fields and no cuts from 2024, in what it hopes is a compelling move to fend off more LIV defections.
Tour commissioner Jay Monahan described the eight 'no-cut' events for 2024 as "can't-miss tournaments", with players able to earn places through the regular tour season.
LIV Golf reacted to the announcement by stating on Twitter: "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Congratulations PGA Tour. Welcome to the future."
The PGA Tour insists there are striking differences, with the opportunity for players to earn spots through year-round competition, rather than being guaranteed a place week-in, week-out.
Tiger Woods has spoken of this being a "very turbulent" period for golf, but he remains committed to the PGA Tour, with the 47-year-old American said to have turned down an offer of around $700m to $800m.
Rory McIlroy is firmly opposed to LIV taking over, too, and the PGA Tour has kept a host of household names – the likes of Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay – while others have slipped away.
Looking at the no-cut events, McIlroy has said major sponsors "want a guarantee that the stars are there", and blue-chip investment will be essential if the PGA Tour is to keep raising prize pots.
"If that's what needs to happen, then that's what happens," the Northern Irishman added.
What next? Will others jump ship?
The LIV tour has expanded to become a 14-event season, running from last month's opening tournament in Mayakoba, Mexico, through to the November finale in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Eight of those events will take place in the United States, including the March 17-20 Tucson tournament.
It has a US TV deal now, with CW Network. The major sport networks have not picked it up yet, but this marks a significant stepping stone.
By next year, it may even be awarding ranking points, although that is far from certain to come to pass.
There will be LIV players allowed to compete at the Masters next month, and they are set to be able to compete at all four majors, while remaining exiled from the PGA Tour and Europe's DP World Tour, and quite possibly the Ryder Cup.
Chile's Mito Pereira and Colombian Sebastian Munoz have moved across from the PGA Tour this year, and the question is whether any more notable names will also be tempted.
Cantlay, who was rumoured to be considering a switch to LIV last season, said the no-cut PGA Tour step would "make the Tour stronger and put an emphasis on those weeks".
What about this week? It's a mess, isn't it?
Smith's absence is a tough one for the Players Championship to swallow. Organisers have been unable to herald the champion's return, and Smith would sooner be involved than on the outside, but he made his choice and this is the consequence.
In fact, last year's top three are all LIV-ing it up these days, with Anirban Lahiri and Paul Casey consequently not involved this week either.
Smith lives just down the road, and he told Golf.com he would "definitely be watching on TV", hinting he could even turn up to watch.
"I grew up my whole childhood watching the event and yeah I'd love to get out there," Smith said.
"I don't know how it would kind of be received, but getting out there and watching, walking around in the crowd, might be pretty funny."
In a serious, big-bucks business, there would be a sense of pantomime to that happening, and it seems unlikely Smith will roll up. But then this all seemed unlikely two years ago, and here we are.
Joel Embiid was the dominant force in the Philadelphia 76ers' 117-94 road win in Minnesota on Tuesday, declaring afterwards "I feel like I'm unguardable".
The seven-foot Cameroonian behemoth was at the peak of his powers against Rudy Gobert, racking up 39 points on 13-of-22 shooting in just 28 minutes. He also added 14 rebounds, four assists and four steals.
Making the feat even more impressive was the fact that it came on the second night of a back-to-back, just 24 hours after piling 42 points (11-of-16 shooting) on defensive ace Myles Turner and the Indiana Pacers.
Following consecutive seasons where he finished runner-up in MVP voting to Nikola Jokic, the 28-year-old has taken his game up another level this time around, sporting career-highs in points (33.2), field goal percentage (53.5) and steals (1.1).
He trails only Luka Doncic (33.4 points per game) in the race for the scoring title, while also leading the league in made free throws per game (10.2).
Speaking to ESPN immediately after improving the 76ers' record to 43-22, Embiid said he feels it will be the same outcome no matter who is guarding him, even three-time Defensive Player of the Year Gobert.
"I take pride every single time I step on the floor, no matter who's guarding, I feel like I'm unguardable," he said. "I want to show them that it’s not that easy to guard me.
"[The Gobert matchup] doesn't necessarily motivate me, but it's the same thing with every big in the league, it doesn't matter who I'm playing, it just feels like I'm going to do my thing regardless. I'm going to dominate.
"It's no disrespect to any of them, but MVPs, Defensive Player of the Year, that doesn't mean anything to me. I'm still going to be the best player on the floor."
While he said he has bigger things to worry about, Embiid admitted it would be special to receive what he feels is the pinnacle of individual awards when asked who he feels is the MVP favourite.
"I don't know, that's not for me to answer," he said. "I feel like, you know, obviously being in the running the last few years has been 'whatever', and this year I've taken a different approach.
"I'm just trying to focus on the right things, win games, dominate – which I've been doing – and whatever happens, happens.
"Obviously it would mean a lot to win one, that's the best award anyone can get, but like I said I'm just focused on making sure I, first of all stay healthy, win games, and dominate.
"But I'm excited about the playoffs, that's where I feel like – I feel good. I feel good about myself and my team, so I just want to make sure that all of us get there healthy, and we do what we gotta do."
After putting together a 31-10 record since December 9, the 76ers are now just 1.5 games behind the Boston Celtics (45-21) in the race for the Eastern Conference's two seed, with the Milwaukee Bucks (47-18) pulling away out in front.
Anthony Davis says he will be fine after shaking off a bloodied nose to record 30 points with a season-high 22 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Lakers past the Memphis Grizzlies 112-103 on Tuesday.
In the absence of the injured LeBron James, Davis was crucial for the Lakers who moved up to ninth – among the Play-In Tournament spots - in the Western Conference with the win, improving their record to 32-34.
Davis was floored and left clutching his bloodied nose with 6:43 remaining in the second quarter after copping an errant hand from David Roddy when securing a rebound.
The All-Star power forward was patched up and returned with a dominant performance, shooting 11-of-17 from the field with seven-of-nine from the free-throw line, with 22 rebounds including four offensive boards.
"It's still bleeding but we've got to win basketball games," Davis told ESPN during his on-court post-game interview.
"I do all I can to come out and compete every night and help this team get victories. The nose will be alright. We've got two days to recuperate and make sure it's still in place. I'll be alright."
Davis hailed the Lakers' defense for the win, coming two days after knocking off another Western Conference rival, the Golden State Warriors, 113-105 on Sunday.
The race for playoffs spots in the Western Conference is tight, with the Lakers only a few games behind the fifth-placed Dallas Mavericks and Warriors (both 34-32).
"It's a must-win," Davis said. "Every game we play from now is a must-win for us. Nothing changed tonight.
"Our ball club did a great job competing on both ends of the floor, little carryover from the game before against Golden State.
"We feel we owe this team one, we let one slip away in Memphis. Ja [Morant] was a big part of that. We wanted to come out and compete. All our guys stepped up tonight."
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